Ian Thorpe, Julia Zemiro and Ernie Dingo take epic genetic journey in DNA Nation
Thursday 21 April 2016
Produced by Blackfella
Films (First Contact, Redfern Now), DNA Nation follows one of Australia’s greatest Olympians Ian Thorpe, iconic Indigenous actor Ernie Dingo, and TV presenter and Queen
of Eurovision Julia Zemiro as they set
off on an epic journey of genetic time travel to find out where they — and
the rest of us — come from.
DNA is the instruction manual that helps build
and run our bodies. But it also contains a series of genetic route maps that can
trace our mother’s mother’s mother and our father’s father’s father, and so on,
back through tens of millennia, revealing how our ancestors migrated out of
Africa and went on to populate the rest of the world.
As Ian, Ernie and Julia follow in the footsteps
of their ancient ancestors, they are guided by some of the world’s leading
experts in genetics, anthropology and archaeology.
They experience life as hunter-gatherers in
Tanzania, dig for fossils in the Arabian desert, ride horseback in Kyrgyzstan,
and take to the high seas in Timor Leste, discovering the remarkable journeys
each of their ancestors made from Africa to Australia over 200,000 years ago.
SBS Director of Television and Online Content Marshall
Heald said:
“DNA Nation is a groundbreaking series that could change the
way we think about ourselves, the world and what it means to be Australian. Could
it be that we’re not who we think we are?
“The quest to understand what makes us who we are
is a fundamental human need. As Australia’s multicultural broadcaster, SBS is uniquely
placed to explore and challenge our concepts of identity.
“From our eye-opening flagship documentary DNA Nation, to the abundance of
cross-platform content, ‘SBS Explores
Identity’ will examine the topic from all angles.”
While Ian, Ernie and Julia embark on their
globe-trotting adventure, the documentary also presents a genetic census conducted
using DNA donated by everyday Australians, from six distinct ethnic groups “â
Greek, Chinese, Anglo-Celtic, Indian, Lebanese and First Nations Australians.
The census represents more than 90 per cent of
Australia’s population, and delivers a snapshot of the nation’s genetic
ancestry. It’s the first survey of its kind, and the results will help reveal
the hidden story of our identity.
Alongside DNA
Nation, ‘SBS Explores Identity’ offers
a range of content across the network:
News and Current
Affairs
Insight — ‘I’m Not Who I Thought I Was’ — 8.30pm, Tuesday 17
May
Uncovering a family secret can be incredibly
disruptive to one’s identity. Insight
speaks with people who have uncovered something that has left them thinking,
“I’m not who I thought I was.” Guests include a German/Nigerian woman who
discovered she is the granddaughter of a high-ranking Nazi concentration camp
commandant; an Australian woman who, after being reconnected with her birth mother,
found out she was the product of family sexual abuse and incest; and two people
who are still searching for answers to their family secrets, using DNA testing
to help them.
SBS World News
Throughout ‘SBS Explores Identity’, SBS World News will feature ten stories delving
deep into the cultural backgrounds of high profile Australians, including performer
John Paul Young, arts philanthropists Andrew and Renata Kaldor, Minister for
Health, Aged Care and Sport Sussan Ley, and rugby legend Mark Ella.
The Feed
Host Jeanette Francis is testing her DNA to delve
into the ethical and somewhat controversial side of testing DNA for the
likelihood of developing diseases.
Radio and Language
SBS Radio is exploring
identity in more than 70 languages by recognising Australia’s diversity is more
than multicultural stereotypes. Our programs are talking to people who define
themselves by their passions or sub-cultures. Meet an office worker by day, Cosplay hero by night, Australian-Sikh hip
hop artist L-Fresh the Lion and a Filipino-Australian cardiothoracic
nurse/salsa dancer.
NITV
NITV will feature a host of dedicated Indigenous identity
programming.
Talking Language with Ernie Dingo
(Wednesdays from 18 May, 9.30pm) is a personal journey providing a unique
understanding of how knowledge of Aboriginal languages is shaped by ancestral
connections to the land, stars, water, sea and the air we breathe. Ernie visits six people from across Australia
whose stories of a spiritual connection to country highlight some of the
benefits and current challenges people face maintaining, reviving and creating
languages within their communities.
The Point with Stan
Grant: DNA Special (Sunday 22 May, 9.30pm) will investigate what it means to
understand your identity and culture and what happens when this connection is
taken away. Programming will close with movie Tudawali (Sunday 29 May, 9.30pm), Ernie Dingo’s outstanding
portrayal of Robert Tudawali, the first Aboriginal film star, whose lead role
in Jedda is iconic in Australian
cinema.
Online
Website
SBS Online will curate all
the content from across the network on a special ‘SBS Explores Identity’ page (sbs.com.au/identity
— live soon), including a collection of
original articles, videos and news stories, as well as a DNA Nation topic page with opinion pieces from the program
participants and a series of pieces examining the science behind the episodes.
Social media
SBS will host a Facebook Live Q&A with Dr Mitchell, DNA
expert from DNA Nation, at 9.30pm on Sunday 22 May, following the first
episode of the series. Join in the conversation on the SBS Australia Facebook
page.
SBS will also be bringing together and sharing the wide range
of content being produced across the network exploring identity throughout May
and June, using the hashtag #SBSExploresIdentity.
Australians can find out how unique their cultural background
is with SBS’s Ancestry Mixer. The last Census
revealed we’re made up of over 300 different cultural ancestries, with
thousands of hybrid mixes. How unique is your tribe? Find out with the Ancestry
Mixer, and share your mix on Facebook and Twitter.
On Demand
SBS On Demand will explore and celebrate identity with a
collection of titles including Dead
Famous DNA, Who’s Your Daddy: Tales
of the Unexpected, What Makes Us Human? and Meet the Izzards.
‘SBS Explores Identity’ kicks off Sunday 15 May
and runs until Sunday 5 June.
The flagship 3-part documentary DNA Nation premieres Sunday 22 May at
8.30pm, with episode 2 airing Sunday 29 May, and the final episode airing
Sunday 5 June.
The series will be available after broadcast,
anytime, anywhere on SBS On Demand: www.sbs.com.au/ondemand/